Vehicles sped by.

The sunlight was blinding.

The asphalt road blurred with passing cars, the roar and clamor fading quickly behind.

Gu Shen reached out, peering through his fingers, examining this realistic illusion… This was the second time he had entered this dream. The last time, he had entered as “Zhou Yexin.”

And this time, he was the protagonist of the dream.

There was one difference from before… a faint dirge drifted through the air.

A funeral march.

Was this music reminding him… of the time limit in reality?

This seemed different from what he had expected. Xiao had used Zhou Yu’s body to activate [Oblivion Dream]. According to the records, [Oblivion Dream] was like a mirror… reflecting reality within the dream.

If something from reality was brought into the dream and destroyed, it would also shatter in reality.

“Based on this attribute, the person locked onto by [Oblivion Dream]… should appear in this dream.”

But here, it was empty… there was nothing.

The speeding vehicles, even if captured with mental strength, only showed blurry phantoms… clearly not a useful clue.

Just as Gu Shen was pondering, he suddenly caught sight of a familiar figure.

One large, one small, crossing the road.

“That’s… Zhou Yu and Zhou Yexin?”

Gu Shen frowned.

The dream was replaying from a different perspective.

But this time… Zhou Yu’s head was no longer a blurred mess of code.

Gu Shen slowly followed them. The father and daughter seemed so real in the dream, and knowing what was about to happen, he suddenly felt a pang of sadness.

Zhou Yu from ten years ago wasn’t very tall, but his back alone gave a sense of security and reliability.

He was holding the little girl’s hand… if he wasn’t mistaken, they were looking for “Dora.”

The lost dog.

Across the road, then across the lawn.

The father and daughter walked slowly, so Gu Shen walked slowly too… The funeral march in the air was unusually long, and a sense of impending doom gradually descended, changing the color of the dream.

The “dream” seemed large.

But in reality… there was no other path to take.

Invisible walls of air blocked Gu Shen’s attempts to explore sideways. As he walked, he didn’t see a single figure… None of the victims locked onto by [Oblivion Dream], the ones he was looking for, appeared in the first half of the dream.

So Gu Shen had no choice.

He could only follow… the lead of Zhou Yu and his daughter.

He knew that they would soon reach the final stop… and then there would be a massive explosion.

“Daddy… I see Dora!”

As expected, the girl called out in surprise.

Exactly the same as the previous dream, but with one difference… This time, “Dora” didn’t appear as a rabbit doll.

A docile, snow-white Samoyed was tied to the fence of the villa, lying in the mud, tongue lolling…

“We found Dora,” the man said softly. “Yexin, stay here. Daddy will bring Dora home…”

Seeing this, Gu Shen took a deep breath.

He strode forward, blocking the man’s path.

Zhou Yu paused, surprised by the appearance of the young man.

“Mr. Zhou…”

Gu Shen knew this was all a dream, but in the last second, an odd impulse arose. He wanted to prevent the tragedy from happening. Chi Huo (炽火, Blazing Fire) urged him to move.

Perhaps… if he could just stop Zhou Yu from going forward.

Gu Shen said sincerely, “Don’t go near that villa… It’s not safe.”

The man narrowed his eyes.

He slowly reached out and pulled the startled girl behind him, then smiled softly. “The child is here… Some things are not convenient to say. What is your name, sir?”

“…My name is Gu.”

Gu Shen now felt that this dream was too real, not like a dream at all.

He looked at the villa and said softly, “If it’s just to retrieve that dog… it’s not worth it.”

“She has a name… Her name is Dora…” The girl hid behind her father, cautiously looking at Gu Shen, her voice growing softer. “She’s our family…”

“Little… little girl…”

Gu Shen crouched down and said softly, “You wait here obediently, and I’ll bring Dora back for you… okay?”

The girl shyly shrank back, humming softly in agreement.

“Mr. Zhou. Let me do it,” Gu Shen said earnestly.

But a hand held him back.

“…Young man, you look familiar. Have we met somewhere before?” Zhou Yu smiled and said, “But my memory has been getting worse lately… It feels like a long time has passed, but it’s only been a day. It all feels like… a dream.”

Gu Shen wanted to say something, but realized the futility of it.

This was indeed a dream.

“You probably don’t understand what ‘Dora’ means to her.” Zhou Yu looked lovingly at the child behind him and smiled softly. “As a father, how lucky am I to have such a lovely and kind daughter? I want her to be happy forever. Even if she wants the moon, I’ll pluck it down for her…”

With that, Zhou Yu patted Gu Shen’s shoulder lightly, without making contact, as a friendly gesture.

He walked towards the villa area.

Lead-colored clouds swirled, and in an instant, a thick layer of dark clouds covered the sky overhead.

Gu Shen suddenly realized that this was all just a dream… and the one who created the dream was none other than Xiao.

Accompanied by a clap of thunder!

The funeral march drifting through the dream became clear.

A violent explosion erupted before his eyes, a soaring blood-colored flame instantly erupting from the small building. Glass shattered, and the flames engulfed everything. The dog tied to the door, and the man walking towards the villa, were both swallowed in an instant—

Some things cannot be changed, even if repeated a second or third time…

Because this was just a dream.

Gu Shen truly felt the impact… The first thing he did was turn around and hug the girl, running away from the explosion. The sound wave crashed behind him like a tide, like a tsunami, and the rolling heat almost tore apart his mind and soul. And this was just the price of witnessing the “explosion.” The man who truly endured the explosion was standing in the flames.

Gu Shen embraced empty air.

He passed right through the girl’s body, as if hugging a wisp of air, and crashed heavily to the ground.

Gu Shen quickly looked back, only to see the girl standing there blankly. Amidst the countless swirling flames, she didn’t cry. Her face was just blank… A man twisted in the flames, slowly approaching, standing in the fire, reaching out a hand.

Raising it, then lowering it.

“Yexin… be a good girl…”

The voice gradually faded.

An unbelievable miracle occurred…

A snow-white dog, stepping on the sea of fire, ran out quickly from behind the man.